The Breaking Point
by Mr. Alaska
Summary: Randy Cunningham is about to undergo the most dramatic experience of his life. A secret organization wants the mask, and sends trained killers to go and take it from him. In order to protect everyone he cares about, Randy will have to be on the front lines and take on some of the world's deadliest killers. Bullets will be shot. Swords will be swung. And blood will be spilled. R
1. The New Threat

Rating: M

Pairing: Randy/Heidi

Author's Notes: I know what you all must be thinking. You all are probably like, "What are you doing, Mr. Alaska? You've been on Hiatus for all this time, and now you're starting a NEW story? What the hell?" Well, I have a good reason for that. You see, I don't want to burn myself out on writing for just one story. And, since I've lost a lot of inspiration to write for all my other stories, I figured I'd start up a new story. But don't worry, I have no intention of going on another two-year Hiatus again, like I've said before. I just don't wanna burn myself out on writing on a single story. And, since I found myself enjoying Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja recently, and because there aren't a lot of fanfics for it, I thought I'd give it a go. Again, I just want to add something new to my list of stories. I hope you all enjoy reading this story, because I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy writing it.

_**P.S: The first chapter is going to be rather short, compared to most of my chapters. But this is just to give you all a taste of what this story will be about. XD**_

Chapter 1: The New Threat

_**Ring!**_

_'Finally! I'm freaking starving,' _Randy Cunningham thought excitedly, as he and the rest of his class began getting up from their desks. _'Not to mention Howard totally owes me lunch money.'_

Randy Cunningham had gone through some changes in the two years of being _the Ninja_. Now a Junior, Randy stood at around 5'8", almost the same height as Bash was, who had graduated a year earlier. He kept his hair in the same style from when he was a Freshman, with the only difference being it was slightly longer now. His physique hadn't changed all that much, either. He was still really slender and lean. But after years of fighting both the Sorcerer and Hannibal McFist, Randy now had some noticeable muscle to his build. He wasn't _**ripped**_, mind you, but he did seem more physically fit, as apposed to his skinny, no-muscle 9th grade body. His wardrobe had changed, as well. Now, Randy wore a black zip-up hoodie, with the sleeves torn off at the elbow. Underneath that, he wore a plain white tank-top. He also had on a pair of baggy black cargo pants and a pair of red/black tennis shoes.

Slinging his backpack over his shoulders, Randy buried his hands in his pockets and casually made his way out of the classroom.

He has been _the Ninja_ for almost two and a half years now. And in that time, Randy had gotten so used to fighting both _Stank'd _classmates and McFist's ridiculous array of robotic creations, that he found himself _predicting_ whenever an attack was going to happen, with him being surprisingly right most of the time. At times, he even found himself getting bored from the encounters. It was almost becoming like a tedious chore than a duty.

But, putting those thoughts aside, Randy instead turned his attention to the other students in the hall. As he came into view of the cafeteria's doors, Randy let out a tired sigh. Everyone else from Freshman year were pretty much the same as Juniors. Julian was still a creeper, fascinated with anything/everything relating to darkness, death and misery. Bucky was still in the school band, playing the triangle. Morgan and her friends were the same bratty, sassy dancers they've always been. The list went on from there.

_'Well, at least Bash and his goons are gone,' _Randy thought happily, as he opened the doors to the cafeteria. As he made his way towards his and Howard's usual table, Randy let out a sigh. Despite their changes over the years, he and Howard were still viewed as _uncool_. Sure, it wasn't as bad as when they were Freshmen. No one bullied them or anything like that. But as Juniors, they still weren't held in high regards from most of the Juniors and Seniors. And while they did get some respect from the lower grades, he figured it was only because he and Howard were higher up on the grade system than them. But, deciding not to feel sorry for himself, Rand just shrugged it off and sat down in his usual spot, waiting for his best friend to show up.

And sure enough, five minutes later, Howard finally arrived.

Howard barely changed since Freshman year. He was still as large and in charge as ever, still wore the same clothes and had the same hair style. The only difference now was he was taller, standing only a couple inches below Randy, and the light peach fuzz on his chin. "Sorry I'm late, Cunningham," he apologized, as he took a seat across from Randy. "I had to borrow some lunch money from Heidi again."

"Dude, how much money do you think you owe her by now?" Randy asked, pulling his bag lunch out of his backpack. "I mean, seriously. You borrow money from her every other day. You must be pushing close to $150 by now or something."

Howard chuckled. "What can I say? We're brother and sister. She loves me." Randy raised an eyebrow, knowing better than to think that was a legitimate answer. Rolling his eyes, Howard sighed. "_Fiiiine_... Heidi dented our parents' car the other day. She was freaking out so I said I'd take the blame. I told them I accidentally tripped and slammed into it..." He paused when he saw a smug grin forming on Randy's face. "Go on, Cunningham," Howard continued, narrowing his eyes. "Make a fat joke. I dare ya."

"Who? Me?" Randy asked, sounding innocent and offended. "_Nooooo_. I would never do that... Not to your face, anyway," he added quietly, even though he knew Howard would hear it. The two sent smug looks at each other before Randy continued. "So, how did your parents react to _you _denting their car?"

Howard sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "Well, they were pissed, but not as pissed as I was expecting. I was expecting them to make me pay for the repairs, but instead, they just scolded me and gave me a week of grounding."

"_Aaaaaaaaw_... That was so sweet of you, Howard," Randy sang, placing his hands over-top his heart and fluttering his eyelashes. "Protecting you big sis from your mean old parents. That's just too adorable."

"As if, Cunningham," Howard snorted back in disgust, rolling his eyes. "I just couldn't let that _"You owe me big time"_ opportunity pass me by. It isn't everyday I get something I can blackmail Heidi with. So when this one appeared, I pounced on it. She's lucky I'm only making her do my homework the whole week I'm grounded. After all the times she blackmailed us, I would say she got off pretty easy..."

Randy sighed and shook his head as he pulled out his ham sandwich from his bag. As Howard went on with his rant about Heidi, he took a second to see if the girl was actually around. After a few seconds of looking around, he spotted her over by the lunch line, talking to some of her friends.

Heidi Weinerman, unlike her younger brother, had change dramatically over the span of two and a half years. She, at the age of 18, was still the most popular girl in school, still broadcast her web-cam show _"Heidi School!"_ and was still one of the most sought after girls in school. Her hair was a little longer, just like Randy's. But now, she had her long orange hair brushed back and was held in place with a bright pink hairband. She had also replaced her white blouse with a red, short sleeve t-shirt, with the words _"I'm Irresistible"_ written on it in big, cursive letters. Over that was a black dress vest, which was unbuttoned. Heidi had also replaced her red skirt with a pair of blue Bell Bottom pants, and had on a new pair of white slip-on shoes.

Another thing that has changed over the years was his relationship with Heidi. While it wasn't too obvious to most, Randy and Heidi had become friends, so to speak. It wasn't like his friendship with Howard. It was more like neither of them found the other to be as annoying as before. Sure, they would talk casually to one another if there was something to talk about. But other than that, they never really hung out. In fact, the only time they even saw one another outside of school was when he came over to their house to hang out with Howard.

But, in the end, Randy was just happy she finally knew his name... It might have taken years for her to do it, but he was happy, nevertheless.

"You okay there, Cunningham?" All of a sudden, Randy's deep thoughts were shattered by the sound of his friends elevated voice and the sound of snapping fingers. Returning to the realm of consciousness, Randy shook his head violently and looked back at Howard, who was sending him a raised eyebrow. "You alright, dude? You were spacing out there for a second."

"... Sorry, I'm just a little tired from Ms. Johnson's class," he lied, sitting up straight. "I swear, that class couldn't have ended fast enough... And your rant about Heidi wasn't much help either." He snickered when Howard frowned. "C'mon man. I'm just kidding. I find your personal life with your sister quite _intriguing_. I promise."

"Whatever, smart-ass," Howard grunted, taking a drink from his chocolate. "You're just lucky you-!" However, before Howard could finish his sentence, he was suddenly cut off by the school's intercom.

"_Good evening, students," _Principal Slimovitz announced, causing all the conversations in the cafeteria in come to a sudden halt. _"As you all may know already, next Friday is going to be the annual Junior/Senior Dance. Tickets will be on sale next week for $20 a person, Monday-Thursday. Remember students, it will be a **formal **dance, so no civilian clothes or shoes. The dance will be from 7:00pm to midnight. Have your tickets ready at the door or you won't be granted admission. Again, tickets will be on sale here at the office next week, Monday-Thursday. Thank you." _When the intercom tuned out, everyone in the cafeteria stayed quiet momentarily. But, after a few seconds, the conversations started back up again.

"Great," Randy mumbled sarcastically, massaging the bridge of his nose, "I forgot that the big dance is going to be next week."

"What's wrong? Don't have anyone to go with?"

"That's not it, Howard," Randy answered, sounding a little annoyed. "You remember what happens _**every **_year at the Junior/Senior Dance, don't you?" Howard opened his mouth to answer, but Randy continued before he could even say anything. "Someone always gets dumped, stood-up or humiliated at this dance. And that, as you should already know, leads to someone getting Stank'd." Randy sighed again, before taking another bite of his sandwich. "Even if I _**did **_have someone to take, I wouldn't even be able to relax because I know it's going to happen... And of course, being _the Ninja_," he added, whispering, "I'll have to be there without a date, further diminishing my already piss-poor re-!" Randy suddenly stopped. Remembering Howard's question, he looked up. "Are _**you**_ taking someone?"

The heavy-set teen didn't answer immediately. At first, he just sat there with a long, cocky grin on his face. "Yup, I'm taking Debbie Kang," he answered, sounding quite pleased with himself. Randy arched his eyebrows, feeling a mix between being proud and jealous for his friend. "Yes sir. That's what the Weinerman charm will do for you. All you have to do is act cool, walk with a little swag, and BOOM! Instant irresistibly, my friend." He then flicked the collar of his jacket, with smugness all but radiating from his being. "I would show you, but I'm afraid it's a closely guarded family secret."

Rolling his eyes, Randy chuckled. "Congrats, man. I'm happy for you."

"But seriously, Cunningham," Howard continued, sounding a little more serious. "You should at least try to ask someone out. How about Theresa?"

"Going with Julian," Randy replied, taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Morgan?"

"Not going. Too _"cool" _for it."

"... Flute Girl?"

Randy sent him a disgusted look. "First off, there is no way in hell would I ask her out. Secondly, she going with Bucky."

"... Well shit," Howard said, scratching the back of his neck. "Those were the only girl we know. Maybe you can ask-!"

"Howard, dude, it's okay," Randy sighed, interrupting his friend again. "I can just hang out near you and Debbie before shit goes down. It isn't a big deal. I'll kick it with you two until the dancing starts, hang out by the snack bar, get laugh at by a couple guys, then regroup after the Stank'd person is dealt with..." He paused and dawned a small smile. "I'm the Ninja, after all. I've got more important things to worry about than some stupid dance."

Randy hid it well, but he was really depressed about this whole situation. It was times like these where he genuinely wished he hadn't been chosen to be the Ninja. The responsibilities were almost too much for one person to bare. He was responsible not just for protecting Norrisville, but possibly the entire world from the Sorcerer and his evil magic. And if that wasn't hard enough, he also had to deal with Hannibal McFist trying to destroy him. All that, _**AND**_ he still had to continue going to school every day as if he was an ordinary kid. But while _ordinary _kids were thinking about tests, girls, and dances, Randy was more concerned about protecting everyone from an evil 800 year-old Sorcerer, hellbent on plunging the world into chaos and darkness...

So yeah, Randy had more things to worry about than most students.

But, putting on a convincing smile, Randy wiggled his eyebrow. _"Sooooooo_," he began, "you and Debbie Kang, huh? You gonna tell me everything, or are you just gonna leave your best bro hanging?" Howard knew Randy was faking the smile and the cheerful demeanor. He knew Cunningham long enough to know when he was really interested in something, and when he just wanted to change a subject. So, deciding it was best not to push the matter, Howard sighed and went on to tell Randy the story.

…. Little did they know of what danger was about to befall them...

_**800 Yards Away...**_

Laying prone atop a building a little more than 800 yards away laid a man, staring down the scope on a semi-automatic Dragunov sniper rifle, with the cross-hairs fixed on the window into the cafeteria. The armed gunman had on a black ski mask and a pair of sunglasses, completely shrouding any and all of his facial features. He had on a military grade black bulletproof vest, a pair of fingerless black leather gloves, a pair of dark green camouflage cargo pants, and a pair of black combat boots, which had a Bowie Knife attached to either side. Laying next to him was a large gym bag, filled with even more firearms.

"_Are you in position?" _The masked man reached up when he heard his employer's voice come through on his headset.

"Affirmative," he answered in a deep Boston accent, as he checked to make sure his rifle was fully loaded. "I'm approximately 800 yards from the school. Lunch period is underway." After confirming his gun was indeed full, he closed the chamber and clicked off the safety.

"_Good. Do you understand your objective, Mr. Clayton?"_

"Eliminate the Ninja and bring back his mask," he replied dryly, focusing his scope onto the windows of the cafeteria.

"_Correct. And just to be clear, no harm is to befall the Ninja's mask. Kill him anyway you see fit, but the mask is not to be damaged in any shape or form. Understand?"_

"Affirmative."

"_Good... Oh, and Mr. Clayton?"_

"Yes, Mr. Fujimoto?"

"_I only desire the Ninja dead. Please try to minimize civilian casualties... Because from what I've heard about you, you appear to be somewhat of a "loose cannon" as it were?"_

Clayton let out a chuckle. "I prefer _"remorseless killer" _personally. _"Loose cannons" _are more of a hard-boiled cop thing." When the comment didn't get a response, Clayton let out a sigh. "Alright. Minimal civilian casualties."

"_Thank you, Mr. Clayton. And I'm sure I don't have to remind you not to underestimate the Ninja and his abilities. He may be a mere teenage boy, but with that mask, he is a adversary that is not to be taken lightly."_

"Understood," Clayton agreed, steadying his aim on the school. "I've seen the footage. I know what to expect."

"_Good. But just in case something goes wrong-!"_

"Nothing will go wrong," the assassin corrected. "Nothing ever goes wrong when _**I'm **_behind the trigger."

"_... I see..." _There was another pause. _"Good luck, Mr. Clayton."_

When he heard his employer end the transmission, Clayton reached into his pocket, and pulled out his iPod. Turning the volume up all the way, he went through his playlist and came to the song he wanted. _"Man of the Hour" by Virtuoso._ As the song began to play, Clayton pushed his sunglasses onto his forehead, and zeroed in on the school once again. "Well," he chuckled, tightening his hold on his rifle, "I guess it's time to go to work."

And then, he pulled the trigger.

_**To Be Continued...**_

You got to love cliffhangers, don't ya? I used to HATE them before I actually started using them, myself. I know, I'mma douche. But hey, that's just how I roll, yo! So how did you all like it? Has potential? I'm probably gonna update this one again before I go back to my Ed Edd Eddy story again. Like I said, I just felt like writing something new. Hope you all enjoyed it. _**IF YOU SEE ANY SPELLING MISTAKES, PLEASE TELL ME. XD**_


	2. The Death of a Killer

Rating: M

Pairing: Randy/Heidi and Howard/Debbie

Author's Notes: Hello again, all my loyal readers. Mr. Alaska here again, with another update of my first ever RC9GN story. As I said in the first chapter, I'll most likely pop back to my Ed Edd Eddy story after this update, since I don't want to get _**TOO**_ distracted with this one. But, I can honestly tell you that at first, I wasn't too sure about this story. I almost thought that it wouldn't go that far. But after the first chapter, I can now say for certain that I am genuinely interested in it now. The idea of a Randy graduating from fighting McFist's ridiculous robots and the Sorcerer's magic, to trained killers and assassins seems really appealing to me. Also, I found that listening to the right music helps develop characters. I thought of Clayton while listening to _"Man of the Hour"_ by Virtuoso. I'm a music junky, so I like to incorporate music into my work. You'd be surprised by how much it helps. But anyway, in the last chapter I left you with a cliffhanger. I had just introduced _**Clayton**_, a mercenary on a mission to retrieve the mask of the Ninja. Shit is about to get real, especially with him aiming his Dragunov sniper rifle into a crowded high school cafeteria. What will happen next? How will the Ninja confront this deadly assassin?

_**Warning: This chapter will contain violence, blood and gore. Ye have been warned.**_

Chapter 2: The Death of a Killer

It was complete and total mayhem. It was so sudden. One second, everyone was laughing, having friendly conversations with one another. Then all of a sudden, the window of the cafeteria shatters, with a bullet ricocheting off the floor and hitting the ceiling. At first, there was a moment of total silence and motionlessness. No one really knew what had happened, because it happened so fast. Even Randy was caught of guard by what had happened. But then, the faint sound a gunfire was heard in the distance, followed by another bullet which, this time, struck a table where some cheerleaders were eating at. It was than that everyone comprehended what was exactly happening.

They were being _**shot**_ at...

That was when the mayhem started. Everyone went into panic-mode, and scattered in all directions, crying in terror and scrambling to the nearest exit. That was the normal protocol, since that school had had so many monster attacks. But this was different. Someone was opening fire on a school cafeteria filled with kids. Someone was out to _kill_. Randy and Howard immediately dove to the floor when it became clear what was going on. "Holy shit! Someone's _**SHOOTING**_ at us?" Howard yelled/asked, as he and Randy kicked over their table, making a make-shift shield out of it. "What the fuck? Is McFist actually shooting up the school to get you?"

As bullets continued to ricochet off the floor, Randy reached for his backpack. "I don't think this is McFist," he replied quickly, almost in a frustrated hissing tone. "He's all about robots, and only goes after the Ninja." He started rummaging around his backpack, while looking around. Everyone was gone, and thankfully, no one has been hit... Yet.

With that thought in mind, he pulled out his mask.

_**Back with Clayton...**_

"_I've noticed those in power have no anterior motives  
Than to kill the inferior with corrosive chemicals  
The virtuoso locust internally tearing ya with explosives  
Whole infirmaries scared of ya cause your throat-less  
My inferno be searing ya till it's hopeless  
I'll incinerate you in my crematory  
Innovator what I breathe is gory, disintegrate ya no need for stories  
For the police, my flow heat leave no evidence  
No sediment I burn books, there's no testament  
To the savage things, that the battle king  
Does when I stab and swing, slice Jupiter, slash Saturn's rings  
Splinter Venus, then leave the man in the Moon  
Wounded in operating rooms being fed by intravenous  
Seen as off the radar, my dark laser  
Will drop eight stars, and chop holes through quasars  
A powerhouse, brute force like rouge elephants  
Runaway rhinoceros, cut out they esophagus."_

Rapping along to his iPod, Clayton started taking aim at the windows of the hallways when everyone had seemingly left the cafeteria. As students stampeded through the halls, Clayton aimed up and fired some rounds, striking high up on the lockers. When he started doing this, almost everyone in that part of the hall immediately dropped to the floor, while a few continued running over downed students. His orders were only to kill the Ninja and take his mask. So, as he continued firing rounds at random parts of the school, further plunging the student body into a panic frenzy, in hope of smoking his target out, he continued to rap.

"_Ask most I'm half ghost the last rebel  
Smash metal like cinder blocks tied to gas pedals  
Skull spit a full clip chest left holy like a pulpit  
Head and neck snapped like a bullwhip  
Mind is an elaborate, hazardous labyrinth  
Filled with ravenous, savages the flow hazardous  
Like rapids with white water to fights slaughter  
I might order executions, slice quarters with mic cords for retribution  
I'll leave your life torn in destitution  
We need a resolution, your death is the best solution  
My evolution break down your institutional practice  
Fascists want my name on the blacklist  
Earth's axis, cracked with so much force  
When I was born it was torn from the back of Atlas  
I smash this track with Mjollnir  
Born chief viking soldier, zero Celsius blood, life is colder  
Like a polar cap in Nova Scotia  
Souls are at rest, as you digest a whole gallon of ammonia  
Born stoner mom's smoked lie at my birth  
Fell from heaven and was raised as a child of the Earth."_

But as he continued to pump off rounds into the school, he was suddenly greeted with an all too familiar sound. Putting a cease to the firing, he looked down to the street below him. And sure enough, down below him were about a half a dozen police cars, with cops both being positioned around the building, and cops storming the building itself.

Letting out a sigh, Clayton pushed himself back and went to his gym back. _'Well,' _he thought, pulling a fully loaded AK-47 out of the bag_, 'I suppose I was going to have to deal with the cops anyway... So much for no civilian casualties...' _But, as he slung the gym bag around his shoulder, a wicked smile crept onto his face. _'Ah well. I'm sure that he'll follow the bodies."_

_**Back with Randy...**_

_'This is bad,' _Randy, now disguised as the Ninja thought, as he bolted from the cafeteria's shattered windows and made his way towards the sounds of the police cars. _'This isn't McFist I'm dealing with. Whoever this is is out for blood... **My **blood... And is willing to shoot up a high school cafeteria to do so... Who the fuck am I dealing with here?' _As he started to sprint towards the city, the sound of gunfire could be heard. It sounded like a classic shoot-out, with the sounds of standard police issued handguns mixing with the fast, repetitive sound of a fully automatic assault rifle.

Randy wasn't going to lie to himself. He was terrified beyond belief, and he had some good reasons to be. **1) **He was going up against an unknown and heavily armed enemy. **2) **He had just witnessed what this unknown attacker was willing to do to get him. Randy knew that this wasn't some random school shooting. Whoever was behind that gun was after one thing and one thing only... The Ninja. McFist wanted the Ninja destroyed too, but he never went as far as to willfully attack innocent student in the middle of the day, especially using high-powered firearms. Whoever was after him was serious... _Dead_ serious. **3)** He had no idea how to deal with an enemy like this. With McFist's robots, he simply destroyed them. With the Sorcerer's Stank'd victims, he simply broke the thing the student held most dear, instantly and harmlessly shattering the Sorcerer's hold on them. But now... This was a whole new ball game all together.

_**BOOOM!**_

Without warning, the ground was shook by a massive explosion. The sound of the explosion was so great that it caused Randy to lose his footing, causing him to tumble forward. Getting back up and shaking his head, Randy looked towards where the explosion came from. And, about 400 yards away, he could see a large pillar of black smoke drifting into the sky. He couldn't see what had blown up, because of a couple large building. But he knew that whatever it was, it was big. And what made it worse was the fact that now, after the explosion, the sounds of the police cars' sirens could no longer be heard. Scaling an abandoned building, Randy feared the worse. _'Please let everyone be okay. Please let everyone be okay. Please let everyone be okay. Please let everyone be o-!'_

But, to Randy's horror, his fears were realized when he climbed to the top of the building and took in what had happened

It was a horrifying and sickening sight. As Randy gazed down to the streets below in horror, all he could see was complete and total carnage, something no 17 year-old boy should ever have to see. On the ground below lay the bodies of the policemen, damaged and mangled beyond recognition. They were riddled with bullet wounds, laying in pools of their own blood, and in a few cases, in pieces. Fighting the urge to throw up right than and there from the sight of the mangled and dismembered bodies, Randy forced himself to continue surveying the gruesome scene. Every police car was now nothing but a mass of smoldering pile of twisted scorched steel, from what Randy deduced was the result from the bone-shaking explosion.

_'… Oh my God... This can't be real,' _Randy told himself desperately, clenching his eyes shut. _'This can't be happening... Not just because of me...' _But try as hard as he may, he could not alter the horrifying reality of this situation with his hopeful thoughts and prayers. He opened his eyes again and gazed down at the bloody scene, with a sickening feeling overwhelming his being. He tried to hold it in, but it was just too much for him to handle.

He dropped to his knees, quickly pushed up his mask to where only his nose and mouth were visible and emptied the contents of his stomach, right there atop the building.

"A little too much to take in at once, huh?"

As Randy convulsed, bringing up more of his stomach's content, he heard someone's voice coming from across the street. So, mustering enough will power to hold back the throw-up, Randy looked up with bloodshot eyes. Across the street, sitting casually atop a pile of even more dead policemen sat Clayton, with his mask also pulled up as he smoked a cigarette. His mask, vest and pants had blood stains on them, further proving that he was in fact the culprit he was looking for.

Randy, with a mixture of horror, sorrow, and shear rage, bolted to his feet. "Wh-who the fuck are you?" He screamed at the top of his lungs, drawing and pointing his sword at Clayton. But despite then rage that was present in his voice, and the threatening gesture of pointing his sword at him, Clayton merely sat there as Randy was practically hyperventilating, both as result of him throwing up and his rage. "Answer me, damn it! Who the fuck are you? Why did you do this?"

Clayton didn't answer immediately. At first, he just sat there and took a long drag of his cigarette. But, with a long exhale of smoke, he replied. "Well, my name really isn't important here, boy," he answered, as he slowly pushed himself off the pile of corpses. "But if ya must know, my name is Bradley Clayton. But I'm better known as _"The Boston Butcher." _I got that name for... Well..." Clayton let out another wicked chuckle, and motioned his head down toward the bodies he was sitting on. "... I'm sure you can connect the dots, right?"

"What do you want with me?" Randy demanded, his voice just a loud as before. But now, the initial surge of sickness has past. So he had pulled his mask back down.

"Me? I'm here for a couple things, really," Clayton answered, as he started to lean next to the door the policemen used to access the top. "You see, my employer commissioned me, at great cost I might add, to kill you and take that mask of yours from ya. He says that little mask you got there has some sorta magical properties or some shit like that. I didn't dig too deep into it. All I know is that if I whack you and bring that mask back, I get a cool $1,000,000... Shame about these poor gentlemen here, though," he added in false sympathy, gesturing to all the dead men in the area. "But you know, _collateral damage_ and all that, right?"

The more Clayton talked, the more Randy found himself tightening the grip around the handle of his sword.

"Tell me, boy," he continued, folding his arms across his chest. "Have you ever _**killed **_anyone before?" Randy's narrowed his eyes into dangerous slits and shook his head. "Figured as much," Clayton sighed, rolling his eyes. "A ninja that never killed is as dangerous as a gun without bullets."

"Fuck you," Randy growled, flipping Clayton his middle finger. "I don't have to kill to get shit done. When I'm done with you, you'd wish you'd never accepted this job."

"Is that right?" Clayton asked, with wickedness coating his voice like venom. "Than I'm sure you wouldn't mind me testing the theory..." Then, Clayton reached back, pulled out his AK-40 and opened fire.

_**Meanwhile, Back at School...**_

The school was now on lock-down. Every student in the whole school was in a classroom, all gathered in one corner of the room, as protocol during a lock-down. **(You know what I'm talking about, right? In school they teach you what to do during a lock-down. Lock the doors, turn off the light, get into a corner and shut the hell up, right?) **Howard and Heidi sat next to one another, with trembling, sniffling and traumatized students around them. Howard was scared too, but more about his friend than the idea of getting shot. He knew _**they**_ weren't being targeted. It was the Ninja that was the target.

_'You better watch your ass out there, Cunningham,' _he thought, before looking over to his sister. To his surprise, she was taking this whole situation rather well. Sure, she was visibly shook up from being shot at, but she wasn't whimpering or crying like all of the other girls... Or Julian. She just sat there, eying the floor intensely. _'How can she be so cool about this?' _Howard knew that he was taking it well too, compared to all the other guys. But that's because he had been around Randy for nearly all the times shit went down that involved killer robots or Stank'd students. So he was used to stuff like this happening. But what was Heidi's excuse?

Scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, Howard chuckled softly. "Looks like _Heidi School _is gonna have a special episode tomorrow, huh?"

Heidi turned to Howard with a her signature _"I'm not amused" _look. "Now's not the time, Howard," she replied, sounding more worried than annoyed. "We've just got attacked by some maniac with a gun, in case you haven't noticed. We could've _died _today. So I don't think now is the best time to be making jokes."

Howard frowned. "Well _sorry _for trying to lighten the mood," he replied in a huff. "I'm making jokes because I'm glad we _**aren't **_dead right now."

"Well, knock it off," she growled. "For all we know, that freaking psychopath could be walking in here at any-!" She stopped when she finally realized something. Heidi looked around frantically. "Wait... Where's Randy?"

It was weird hearing Heidi say Randy's name correctly, even though that has been a norm for a while now. But what was weirder was hearing her say that in such a frantic and panicky voice. "I don't know," he lied, much to Heidi's suspense. "We got separated when the bullets started to fly... But I'm sure he's safe." Heidi gave him a sad, almost uncertain look, before nodding and going back to staring at the floor.

_'… Well, I hope so, anyway...'_

_**Back with Randy...**_

_BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! _

_**BOOM!** _

_BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!_

Randy had to admit, it was scary as hell being shot at and having grenades thrown at you. It was only made worse by the fact that as he sprinted and jumped from rooftop to rooftop, he discovered that Clayton was able to keep a good pace going and stay on his tail, firing round after round and chucking grenades at him. But thanks to his super human reflexes and speed, Randy was able to stay just out of the AK-40's line of accuracy. The grenades, on the other hand, were a little harder to dodge. As he dashed ahead of each explosive, he was feeling shrapnel whiz past his head, almost tearing through his mask.

**(FYI: Randy and Clayton are still on the opposite sides of the street.)**

"Aw, come on Ninja," Clayton shouted, as he continued to take aim while running across from Randy. "I know you can do better than this! I've seen footage of you taking down robots 100 times your size, and it didn't take you THIS long!"

_BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! _

_Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click!_

Clayton had to reload.

Deciding to finally fight back, Randy reached into his pouch and pulled out a throwing disc. Winding up, Randy twirled on his feet and sent the disc straight at Clayton, who was in the process of reloading. The projectile came in and struck his hands, knocking both the AK-40 and the ammo cartridge down to the street below. Seeing as how he didn't have any more firearms on him, Randy turned towards him and leaped across the street dividing them. "Not so tough without your guns, are you?" But, as Randy landed atop the building in front of him, he was greeted with Clayton, chuckling at him. "What's so funny?"

Taking off his sunglasses, revealing his deep green eyes, Clayton started laughing a little harder. "You have things backwards, _son_," he laughed, tossing his glasses off the side of the building. "I wasn't called _"The Boston Butcher" _for my skilled with guns or explosive. I was called that because of _**these.**_" He then reached down and pulled out his two Bowie knives from his bootstraps. "You see, I prefer being up close and personal," he continued smugly, twirling the two knives around in the air and catching them. "I made my mark by gutting over fifty-three people in Boston about 20 years ago. I've been killing with blades longer than you've been alive."

Randy tensed up when he heard this, and withdrew his sword again. And at that time, both Randy and Clayton heard a noise coming from the distance. Turning to see what it is, they both saw that there was a helicopter coming towards them. When it got withing 200 yards of them, it became clear that it was the helicopter for the Norrisville News station. The aircraft turned in the air, revealing a man working a camera.

At that point, Clayton couldn't help but let out another demented laugh of excitement. "This is just too perfect," he cackled approvingly, as he threw his knives to the ground and started to undo his bulletproof vest. "This is what I'm talking about, baby! What better way to experience the death of the Ninja of Norrisville than on HD?" Throwing his blood-stained vest to the ground, Clayton reached down and picked his knives back up again. He then pushed his mask back up, freeing his mouth and nose. "Come on, _Ninja_. It's time to prove to everyone what you're really made of." The change in Clayton's demeanor was drastic, and it made Randy uneasy. At first, he was calm and collective. Sure, it was still obvious that he was a complete nutcase, but he didn't show it up until now. Now, he was hopping around excitedly, almost like a boxer getting ready to deliver the knockout blow. His was grinning like a madman while he chuckling and snickering to himself. It was like Clayton himself had been replaced with an even more psychotic version of himself.

"Really?" Randy asked, as he shot Clayton an odd look. "I have a _**SWORD**_, and you're coming at me with two Bowie knives? Do you actually _want _me to kill you?"

Clayton only smiled more. "You said it yourself, kid. You _can't _kill. It's not in your nature, apparently. I, on the other hand, have been doing it my entire life... But I do see your point," he added, getting a confused expression from Randy. "The fight wouldn't be fair, would it?" Then, much to Randy's surprise, Clayton tossed one of his knives to the ground below, leaving him with only one. "There we go," he continued, sounding as if what he did wasn't a big deal. "Now you have more of a chance at actually _surviving_... More than five minutes, at least..."

… _This guy is fucking nuts, _Randy told himself, as he dropped back into his stance from before. "I'm not gonna kill you, you maniac. You may deserve to burn in hell for what you've done, but I'm not gonna be the one to send you there," Randy reminded, dropping into his sword stance.

"Well, I guess that's too bad for you, then." And with that, Clayton charged at Randy.

In an instant, Clayton was within striking range of Randy. With a savage swing, Clayton sent his blade towards Randy's head. The Ninja brought his sword up to block it. But when the blades met, it felt like someone had taken a steel baseball bat to his sword instead of a knife. Randy was forced back, just by the shear strength of the swing. But when Randy got his footing again, his opponent was already closing in for another strike. "Oh, c'mon! You can do better than that," Clayton shouted angrily, sending another swing at the boy. This time, Randy swung his blade back at him, with their blades making contact for the second time. This time, his force canceled Clayton's, so he wasn't send backwards from the blow...

_**Wham!**_

Clayton brought his boot to Randy's stomach, sending him flying backwards and tumbling across the rooftop. The air was literally knocked out of Randy, who was now on his hands and knees, wheezing and gasping for air. _'Wh-what the hell?' _Randy thought, as he desperately tried to regain his breath. _'H-how can someone be this strong?' _As he coughed and wheezed, he heard Clayton start to laugh again. Looking up, he saw his attacker practically in tears and shaking his head.

"I can't believe _YOU _are worth $1,000,000! And here I thought _**I**_ was the insane one! Hahahahahahahaha!" As his laughing fit continued, Randy, despite being winded and sore, felt a serge of anger course through him. Wiping the tears from his eyes, Clayton looked down at the Ninja. "Do you know what the best part of this is, _Ninja_?"

"... What?" Randy asked, heatedly, as he struggling to get up.

"The best part of this is going to be when I gut you like a trout, for the whole city to see," he answered, pointing at the News helicopter. "But not before I take that mask you hold so dear," he added, pointing back at Randy. "That way, everyone you know and care about will see _"The Ninja" _for who he really is. And than, they will have the _pleasure_ of watching you get _**butchered**_ on live television! Think about it. Your mother... You father... All your friends... _**Everyone**_ will finally see who the Ninja is under that mask, just to see him get disemboweled before their very eyes! It will be s-!"

"SHUT UP!" Clayton was interrupted by Randy's blood-curdling scream, followed by the boy charged towards him with blinding speed.

_**Back at School...**_

The school was still on lock-down, but kids were moving about their classrooms freely now. The news that the Ninja was battling an heavily armed man became known shortly after the News helicopter made the scene. In fact, the classroom Howard and Heidi were in was actually _**watching **_it. The teacher had turned on his television set and went to the News and was met with:

"_This is Judy Ericson from channel 5 News, coming to you live from the channel 5 News helicopter. Tom, earlier today shots were fired from atop an abandoned building by a crazed man with a high powered sniper rifle. His target: Norrisville High School. At approximately 11:23am, the cafeteria of the high school became the target of this lone gunman. While there has been no report of any students being shot and killed, I have been told that soon after, police were called to the abandoned building where the gunman was position... We can not show the scene to the public at this time, because we have been told that there have been confirmed reports of dead bodies littering the street below, where it has been said the gunman threw down multiple hand grenades. It has also been confirmed that the bodies belong to the policemen that were called to apprehend the assault." _There was a gasp amongst the students in the class. _"But we are now about 200 yards away from the gunman, where he is now engaged in close-quarters combat with non-other than the Ninja or Norrisville atop another building."_

Howard, Heidi, and the rest of the classroom watched as the battle between the Ninja and Clayton continued.

_**Back with Randy...**_

_Clang! _

_Slash! _

_Clang! _

_Ching! _

_Slash! _

_**Pow!**_

Again, Randy was sent flying back from a blow delivered by Clayton. This time, it was a nasty left hook. But Randy almost immediately sprung back to his feet the moment he hit the ground this time. That was because he was running on adrenaline and fear by this point. Clayton had gotten to him, both with the carnage he had brought and the demented words he spoke. Randy himself wasn't in such good shape. You couldn't see it, but he was covered in bruises from the barrage of punches and kicks Clayton delivered onto him. While Randy was able to block and dodge his knife strikes, he was unable to avoid most of the physical attacks that immediately followed... But Randy was able to get in a few good hits in, himself. Clayton now had a cut just beneath his right eye, a slash across his chest, and was now even missing one of his front teeth because Randy managed to get in a well placed roundhouse.

But Randy was running out of steam. _'This is really bad,' _Randy thought, as he tightened his grip on his sword. He was breathing heavily and was having a hard time keeping focused on the man across from him. _'I don't know how much more of this I can take...' _

Clayton, on the other hand, stood there with cuts and bruises, smiling brightly at the wounded ninja. "I must say Ninja, I am impressed," he began, tossing his knife from one hand to another. "You've held your own against me longer than I thought you would. And look," he then gestured to his body, "you've even left me with a few battle scars. That isn't easy to do..." But then, Clayton's smile faded. "It's too bad I have a job to do." The man than started to slowly walk toward Randy, as he continued tossing his knife from hand to hand.

At first, Randy didn't know what to do. The sight of Clayton just walking towards him left him momentarily paralyzed with fear. Randy knew he was running low on energy, while Clayton seemed to still have some to spare, despite his injuries being worse than his. And he knew what fate was going to befall him if he wasn't able to end this soon. So, shaking his head violently in order to get his vision back, Randy took a deep breath and charged. "RAAAAAAAAAH!" He then let out a loud cry, dashed forward and swung his sword.

_CLANG!_

But this time, Clayton swung his knife with such force that it knocked the sword right out of Randy's hand, sending it all the way to the other side of the rooftop. At first, Randy just stood there, frozen in fear as he realized he was now defenseless, with Clayton towering over him. "Nice try, junior," Clayton chuckled, as he suddenly reached out, grabbed Randy by the neck and lifted him off the ground. "But not good enough..." Randy could barely breath. Grabbing onto Clayton's wrist, he began to flail wildly around, trying to break free of his hold. But it was no use. Clayton's grip was too tight, and he was losing energy fast. "Well, I admit," Clayton continued, as he slowly drew back his knife, "you put up one hell of a fight, boy. Hands down one of the best in terms of it being one-on-one... But now, I'm afraid I-!"

That's when Randy, without warning, reached into his pouch, pulled out a Flash Bomb and threw it in Clayton's face.

_FLASH!_

"AAAAAGH!" Blinded by the burst of intense light, Clayton released Randy, dropped his knife and stumbled backwards. Randy landed on his feet, staggered a little, and with a burst of new found energy, bolted to the other side of the building and got his sword. But at this time Clayton had regained his vision, grabbed his knife and got to his feet. "You little mothafucka," he roared, now clearly enraged. He then charged after the ninja, who had already gotten a hold of his sword. _Only have one shot at this, _Randy thought, as he gripped his sword tight, but didn't pull it out of the floor. He waited until Clayton was close. And when Clayton closed the distance at 15ft, Randy closed his eyes tightly, and did the unthinkable. With a sudden burst of energy, Randy yanked his sword from out of the ground, and with a mighty swing, _**threw**_ it at the charging Clayton.

He couldn't react fast enough, and because of that, the sword flew in and buried itself in Clayton's chest, right where his heart was.

At first, Clayton just stood there, with a sword sticking through his chest and blood slowly oozing from his wound. But then, he coughed, and blood spattered across the ground. Then, he let out a weak chuckle. "... N-nice sh-shot, b-boy..." The words came out as weak whispers, but Randy heard him perfectly, even with the sound of the helicopter near by. And it was after he said those three words that Clayton slowly dropped to his knees and fell to his side, before rolling over onto his back. Randy than dropped to his knees, gazing at the man laying motionless not more than 10ft away from him. At first, a sense of relief washed over him, seeing as the fight had finally came to an end. He was glad that there was no more gunfire or the sound of metal clashing against one another...

But that feeling was short lived, and was soon replaced with a sense of horror. As Randy gazed at the motionless body, the terrifying realization struck him like a ton of bricks. Slowly, Randy stood back up and timidly inching his way to the motionless body. _'…..' _Randy's mind went blank as he stared down into Clayton's lifeless eyes, with blood now dripping from his lips and forming a small puddle beside his face. It was than the Randy fully realized what he had done.

Bradley Clayton was dead...

_**To Be Continued...**_


	3. The Aftermath

Rating: M

Pairing: Randy/Heidi and Howard/Debbie

Author's Notes: Hello again, all you Ninja fans out there. Mr. Alaska here, back with another update. I said I was probably gonna pop back to my Ed Edd Eddy story after the last update, but I figured since I left you guess off at such an intense point in the story, I thought I might as well follow it up as soon as I got the time. In the last chapter, you all were fully introduced to Bradley Clayton, _The Boston Butcher_. He was sent to kill the Ninja and bring his mask to an unknown employer, who only goes by _Mr. Fugimoto_. After attacking the school, Randy was forced to take him on head-on. But despite his opponent having guns and grenades, it all came down to close quarters blade combat. It was a tough fight, but Randy came out on top... But only after he was forced to send his blade into Bradley Clayton's heart. He had KILLED, and if that wasn't bad enough, everyone in Norrisville will have seen it too. How will our mask hero cope with taking a life for the first time? Who will help him through this?

_**Also, this will be another short chapter.**_

Chapter 3: The Aftermath

_'…...' _Randy's mind went blank as he stared down at the lifeless body of Bradley Clayton. It was as if, for that one horrifying moment, time decided to stand still. Randy couldn't hear the helicopter anymore. He didn't even notice that, during the last moments of his fight with Clayton, the clouds overhead went dark. Soon after, rain started to fall. But by that point, Randy had already delivered the fatal blow to Clayton. Now, all he could do is look down at the dead body before him, knowing fully well that it was he who killed him. Slowly, Randy glanced back to his blade, only to see it was still sticking out of Clayton's chest, with blood still seeping from the wound.

_**Boom!**_

Suddenly, the deafening sound of thunder broke Randy out of his trance. He stumbled backwards and landed on his butt, breathing heavily and sweating profusely. He didn't even know it was raining up until he heard the thunder. _'…. I-I... I killed him,' _Randy thought, as the rain started to mix with the puddle of blood that was forming around Clayton, therefore expanding it. _'I-I just k-killed someone...' _Slowly, Randy looked up back at the helicopter. The man working the camera was now pointing it away from them. But Randy could see that the cameraman, the reporter and even the pilot were looking at him, all with shocked looks visible on their faces. _'… And everyone saw it...' _Even though the camera was pointed away, he knew they caught what he did on camera. It was so fast, he knew the cameraman couldn't look away fast enough.

He, Randy Cunningham, had just taken the life of another person, and now everyone will know it.

When the gravity of the whole situation dawned on Randy, he panicked. _'I need to get out of here,' _he told himself desperately, as he staggered up to his feet. He felt sick. Sicker than when he saw the carnage Clayton had brought to the policemen sent to stop him. He was gonna throw up. But he needed to get away from the camera. So, with blinding speed, Randy dashed to the dead body of Clayton, withdrew his sword from his chest, and threw down a smoke-bomb. When the smoke dissipated, Randy was gone, leaving behind the body of Bradley Clayton, laying in a puddle of his own blood and rain.

_**Back at School...**_

There was utter silence throughout the entire high school.

Howard and Heidi stared at the television screen, shocked, just like all the other students. It was quick, but everyone saw it. They had just witnessed the Ninja throwing his sword at Clayton, striking him it the chest. And while that part only lasted a split second before the cameraman pointed away, that split second was enough to show clearly what had happened. Heidi and Howard blinked a couple of times, still shocked. _'… Did he just...?'_

At that time, Judy came back on. _"This is Judy Ericson with breaking news,"_ she began, with the camera aimed at her again. _"The man who was responsible for the shooting at Norrisville High School is now dead. Moments ago, he and the Ninja were locked in a life-or-death battle. But mere moments ago, the Ninja threw his sword at the assailant, striking him in the chest. We can not show you the scene, but I can assure you it is a bloody one. The Ninja has disappeared, just as the authorities had arrived, and it is now a..."_

Howard and Heidi had stopped listening to Judy by this point. "Wow... I can't believe it," Heidi said, rubbing the back of her neck. "I can't believe we just saw the Ninja kill someone. He had never killed anyone before..."

Howard was pretty shocked too. He didn't think Randy would have gone as far as killing him. Killing was something Randy said he would never do. But after a few seconds of thinking about what to say, he turned to Heidi. "Well, he had only fought robots and monsters up until now, right? Out of all the shit that has happened here over the years, has there ever been an instance like this? Where it's not robots or monsters, but an actual person?"

When Heidi heard his question, she took some time to think. "... No, not that I can remember," she answered. "And while I think the asshole deserved to die..." Heidi glanced back at the screen. "... I just never thought the Ninja was gonna be the one who did it."

Howard nodded, as he too looked back up at the television. On the screen, there were cops atop the building where the fight took place. In the middle was a black tarp, with what clearly looked like a body underneath it. Howard sighed as he, Heidi and the rest of the class watched the screen. _'I hope you're doing alright, Cunningham...'_

_**Back with Randy...**_

Randy was now behind the school, in the middle of the small forest. He appeared in a puff of smoke in the middle of a small clearing. Immediately after making sure he was alone, Randy dropped to his knees, pushed up his mask and started to dry-heave. He had just killed someone for the first time in his life. Sure, Clayton was going to kill him if he hadn't done anything. But that didn't help Randy in the slightest. It didn't change what he had done...

He needed to be alone.

He was breathing rapidly, and the cold rain did little to help cool him down. He felt like he was going to throw up, even though he knew he didn't have anything left to throw up. So, he simply continued to convulse, hack and wheeze._'… I-I can believe I just killed someone,' _Randy thought, trying to put a stop to his dry-heaving. Taking deep, sharp intakes of air, Randy staggered to his feet, slowly leaned himself against a nearby tree and slid back down to his butt. _'It w-was so fast... S-so sudden... I-I didn't e-even think about it. It was a-almost instinctive...' _Randy looked at his sword, which was laying in front of him. There was still blood on it despite the downpour of rain...

_Clayton's _blood.

But than, Randy looked away, took a deep breath and breathed out, trying his hardest to calm himself down. Laying there against the tree, Randy took this time to try and relax. Closing his eyes, he started to listen to the sound of the rain, finding it soothing, given the stressful situation. It wasn't so much calming him down, but more like making the sick feeling in his stomach go away. And to his relief, Randy discovered that the sickening feeling he was harboring mere moments ago was now lessening... But it was still there, nevertheless. He knew what he had done, and knew that this feeling wasn't going to go away just because he wanted it to. _'…. What have I done?'_

"Judging from how you're taking this, I am to presume this was your first kill... Am I right, Ninja?"

At the sound of a heavy African voice, Randy's eyes shot open and looked up. Standing no more than 20ft away from where Randy was sitting stood a tall man, who looked to be in his 40s, standing underneath an umbrella. He was black, a deeper shade of black than most African-Americans. He stood at around an impressive 6'4", with his muscular build being even more fit than Clayton's body was. He had long black dreadlocks that went down past his shoulders, along with a short black goatee. He wore a white sleeveless trench-coat, which was unbuttoned. Underneath that, he wore nothing, displaying his well-toned and scar-decorated chest. Attached to his belt were holsters, holding an array of throwing knives. And finally, he had on a pair of white cargo pants and a pair of black combat boots.

But what caught Randy's attention the most was the large _**Scythe**_ attached to his back.

Startled, Randy bolted to his feet, grabbed his sword and got back into his usual fighting position. "Who are you?" Randy barked, trying to keep himself standing upright. It became apparent that he was still a little woozy from dry-heaving. He faltered a little bit at first, but slowly regained his footing again.

To his surprise, Randy was met a hearty chuckle from the man. "Calm yourself boy," the man assured, shaking his head, "I am not here to fight you. I am merely here to see how you were doing after your little run-in with Clayton..." Randy raised an eyebrow when he heard the man mention Clayton's name. "I must say, your form has a lot to be desired. You hold yourself back, which makes you sloppy. If you don't commit, all you do is leave room for mistakes... But in the end you came out alive, which is more than we can say for Bradley, eh?"

"..." Randy didn't say anything at first. He instead studied what the man in front of him had just said. _Was he watching the fight,_ he asked himself, refusing to drop from his stance. "Who are you?" Randy asked again, this time, sounding a little more calm. He eased up on his stance, but kept his guard up, nevertheless.

"You may call me _Isoba_. It means to walk stealthily," the man replied, as he began to lean next to a nearby tree. So, being out of the rain thanks to the tree's branches, he closed his umbrella. As he began to dig around in his pocket, he continued. "I am not here to fight you, Ninja," he assured, as he pulled out a cigar from his pants pocket. "Quite the opposite. I am here to give you _**warning**_."

Placing the cigar between his lips, he reached back into his pocket and pulled out a book of matches. He pulled out a match, struck it against the bark of the tree, and lit his cigar. "You are being targeted by a PMC; a Private Military Company that goes by the name _**Diablo Rising**_," he continued, as he took a long drag from the lit cigar and threw the match onto the wet grass. "The man in charge of it, _Teshima Fugimoto_, wants the power of that mask you have there." Isoba pointed at Randy's mask. "He knows the mask is the source of _the Ninja's _strength, and plans on sending his best assassins here to take it from you..."

Randy stared at Isoba for a few moments after he had finished. He needed to let what all he had said sink in. but, after contemplating all of it, Randy suddenly narrowed his eyes at the African. "How do you know all of this?" Isoba could hear the suspicion and distrusting anger in the boy's voice.

He sighed. "I know this because I was once Diablo Rising's best assassin."

When Randy heard this, his defenses went right back up. He brought his sword back up and pointed it at Isoba, gripping the handle tighter than ever. "So you're a killer. Just like Clayton," Randy growled, narrowing his eyes into dangerous slits. Isoba didn't respond to the accusation. He instead just stood there, giving Randy an emotionless look. "Why should I listen to someone who kills for a living?"

Again, Isoba just stood there, sending Randy an unreadable expression and smoking his cigar. "You should listen to me," he finally replied, letting out a long stream of smoke, "because if you don't, more innocent lives will be taken in Teshima's efforts towards getting your mask." Randy's narrowed glare disappeared, and was replaced with one of worry. "Bradley Clayton was just the warm-up act, boy," Isoba continued, leaning back against the tree again, folding his arms across his chest. "He was sloppy and mentally unbalanced. He was easy compared to the rest of Teshima's goons. But now that you've proven you can handle someone like Clayton, Teshima is going to send his personal favorites here to take you on. And believe me, they're his favorites for a reason." He let out another puff of smoke. "Those guys are going to be harder to beat, especially given the state you're in now. And now they know what it will take to flush you out of your hiding place... But next time, there _**will**_ be more casualties..."

Randy shook his head and sent Isoba another glare. "I won't let that happen..."

"From what I saw today, I don't think you'll have much of a choice when that time comes," Isoba replied, earning another angry growl from Randy. "Look, you have potential, boy. But if you don't change your tactics, you will be as good as dead when the next one comes. Not only that, but more innocent lives will be taken in the process... I can help you take them down and protect this town."

"..." Randy didn't say anything. He didn't know _**what **_say. It was too much to take in all at once. First, his school was attacked by a maniac with a sniper rifle. Than he had to fight that maniac, which resulted in Randy _**killing **_him. And now he had this mystery man, who admitted to being an assassin who once worked for the same company who SENT Clayton after him, claiming that even more dangerous killers were on their way there. Keeping his sword drawn, Randy narrowed his eyes at Isoba again. "... Why would you help me when you yourself once worked for Diablo Rising?"

"..." There was a moment of silence before he replied. "... Let's just say I had a good reason for wanting to break free from Diablo Rising," Isoba answered, sounding a little annoyed for some reason. Than, he dropped his cigar to the ground, before crushing it underneath his boot. "Meet me here tomorrow at 7:30am and I will explain further," he said suddenly, as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black sphere. Randy stared at it, thinking it looked familiar. "Because if I'm not mistaking, you should be in school right about now." Than, without warning, Isoba threw the ball to the ground.

_**Puff!**_

All of a sudden, white smoke erupted from the small ball and quickly engulfed the entire clearly. _'Wh-what the hell?' _Randy thought, as he started to choke from the heavy smoke. _'That smoke bomb was just like mine, but bigger!' _Randy squinted his eyes and fanned the smoke from his face. He continued to cough for a good eight seconds before the smoke started to dissipate. And when it did, Isoba was nowhere to be found. Randy looked around, noticing that even the cigar he had put out was now gone, along with the match used to light it.

But, something did catch Randy's eyes. On the tree Isoba was leaning against, there was a sheet of paper with a small throwing knife pinning it to the tree. Curious, Randy walked forward, yanked the knife from the tree, grabbed the paper and looked at it. On the other side, it read;

_Do not feel sorry for what you did to Clayton, boy. He was a murderous psychopath who deserved to die a death much worse than the one he was given. You did the world a service by taking his life. You made it so he could never harm another innocent person ever again. You don't deserve to lose sleep because you were forced to kill in order to survive... You have the potential of ridding this world of all its chaotic evil. _

_Will you allow me to help you unlock it?_

_Isoba_

Letting out an uncertain sigh, Randy shoved the note and throwing knife into his pocket and made his way back towards the school.

_**At School...**_

Randy entered through the back doors of the school, now out of his Ninja outfit. He slowly and quietly made his way through the halls, walking down below the windows of the classrooms. He knew he shouldn't be outside of any classroom during a lock-down, especially when the lock-down was for a legit reason. _'Okay,' _Randy told himself, as he stealthily made his way down the halls. _'All I need to do is make my way to the locker-rooms, and stay in there until it is safe to come out.'_

But as Randy made his way to the locker-rooms, he had to pass through the cafeteria. There, he had a chance to really see what Clayton had done. There were bullet holes everywhere. On the walls, on the ceiling, in the tables, everything. Lunches were left half eaten and backpacks, books and papers were scattered all across the flood. Randy than exited the cafeteria, and made his way down the next hallway, which was also riddled with bullet holes.

"_Attention students. This is Principal Slimovitz." _Randy jumped when he suddenly heard Slimovitz's voice ring throughout the school from the intercoms. _"As of now, the lock-down is over. I have just gotten a call from the police, telling me it is safe to have students moving about the school freely. So please students, go to your first period classes so your teachers an take attendance. After which, you will be sent home. School will be canceled until repairs can be made to the cafeteria, windows and hallways." _

Randy cursed underneath his breath. He looked around frantically, looking for someplace to hide._'Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit!'_ But, after looking around, he noticed he was right next to the boys' bathrooms. He looked at it, and smacked himself in the head. _'Idiot,' _he thought, as the doors to the classrooms began to open. Randy dove into the bathroom, waited a few seconds and exited, joining the rest of the students as they made their way to their first period classes.

_**To Be Continued...**_


End file.
